A Lost Lyric of Langston Hughes

[Found among his papers at his death, and published here  for the first time.]

Either Way

So some of them’s easy,  and some of them’s hard;

this day’s  one of the latter.

But Time goes rolling, and Time glides by;

in Time, it does not matter.

I’ll find me a boxcar heading West,
and I will ride that train.

And if I find that the past was best,
I’ll just roll East again.

Now some folks like life sunnyside-up;

for some, things wind up scrambled.

Me I been rich, poor, blissful, and blue,

everywhere I’ve rambled.



[For an appreciation of this most American of poets, try this.]